2016-2017 has certainly been a difficult season to be a Husky fan. I think the Boneyard has made the frustration and disappointment worse because the medium amplifies the negativity and makes it seem to grow.
When Calhoun made KO head coach, I presumed that there would be growing pains. Did you all expect that his experiences would make his assumption of responsibility error free? The odds against his NC are far higher than the odds of the injuries that occurred this year. Stuff happens. So, I would say ride it out.
UConn appears to be squeaky clean. Larry F N Brown recruited Emmaneul Mudiay who committed and didn't come - eligibility questions and other opportunities. Then, there was Keith Frazier. That makes KO look good to me.
If clean recruiting is the weakness, and I would not freely concede that looking at last year's class before injury, I think KO has taken steps to address that deficit by upgrading staff skills in the area. I would still suggest that KO has credentials that should wow kids and, especially, their parents. I would also observe that more of the late highly ranked commits seem to be playing games in addition to looking for the best opportunity for their basketball future. Some programs chasing them are also more desperate and, maybe, more willing to do out of the box things to win a recruit.
I have 2 questions for those of you who see this as an issue of conference realignment, which KO had nothing to do with and can't control. If you really believe that top players cannot be recruited to the AAC, (1) wouldn't that mean that KO should not be blamed for failing to do so and (2) what makes you think that UConn could recruit a top coach to face the challenge of recruiting in the AAC? There are 10 active men's college basketball coaches with national championships, as Steve Fisher retired at SDSU. We don't want Boehiem. Ollie would be leaving. Which of the other 8 are coming here?
I would personally be disappointed in KO leaving UConn. If he does, I am certain he will find success in the NBA, where I think his management skills are more compatible. You get the best player left when it's your turn in the draft, people who don't fit your team chemistry can be traded. I think part of the problem is that KO always gave 100% and NBA players all work much harder than college players or they get traded or cut. KO can't do that with a college player. I think he'll figure out how to motivate college kids if he is given the chance.
I can also imagine KO coming back to Storrs after NBA success. HCKO 2.0 certainly sounds better to me than HCRE 2.0.
We could use a small forward!
